March 1-3, 2013, Martin Cr. Cascades Powder Cats

The forecast was not looking all that good, for the Stevens Pass area, and Ryan, one of the owners of Cascades Powder Cats graciously offered a rain check, reschedule or whatever.   But our group, a varied mix had their hart set on skiing, barring that,  sitting in the yurt reading a book and drinking whiskey.  So Friday afternoon found us sloshing around in the rain loading gear in the cat for the ride to the yurt.  We were a little dubious, but everyone was excited for a weekend in the Cascades.

We were all given the once over by Tele the boss dog.



The ride in was somewhat disorienting, the high humidity made keeping the windows in the cab of the cat fog free impossible, so by the time we made the yurt we were not sure where north was.  That was soon forgotten as we set around the table smelling all the good smells coming from the kitchen, and enjoying a beer with our new formed group.  I think the tone of the whole weekend was set by one of the couples in the group announcing they were going to have a baby!  We had a hardy dinner, followed by a rousing game of Farkel I won, and I still can't remember how to keep score(and I almost forgot a chant about Big Booty!) !

Next morning found clearing skies, but thoroughly saturated snow.



Ryan, after the obligatory avalanche refresher selected some low angle terrain to check snow conditions, and our skiing skills.   We were a diverse bunch, with skiing skills running the spectrum from groomers only to anything will be fine, and to complicate matters, we all kinda wanted to start out skiing together.   A tough problem for any guide, but the terrain, and Ryan's knowledge of it,  lends itself to a group like ours.  In just about any point of the compass there was something for everyone. 

And in short order we were making our way down some of the Cascades finest one pass cement.













For the groomers only skiers, it was defiantly challenging skiing, but they were so gung ho, a good time was had by all.  One of the great things about the yurt location, in Martin Cr. is that without too much effort, you can drop off and pick up skiers, and keep everyone happy.
By 4:30 we were all back at the yurt, well skied, great views, and good company. The evenings was a replay of Friday's, good food, Farkel and plenty of lively conversation.  By the time we switched off the solar powered lights and called it a nigh, it had cooled down and was snowing like mad.

It snowed about six or seven inches of light fluffy snow, and we were all giddy with anticipation, the one unknown, the wind. 





We had a wonderful experience; a new powder skier, the perfect slope, and a clever guide, this was the result!











What Fun!

Yurt lounging.





Getting some:











And then the boss said it was time to go.



This was a great trip, right in our back yard.  And lest anyone think I'm plugging Cascades Powder Cat's, I am, but not because I have any affiliation with them, they just run a great outfit, and showed us to a great time in less than ideal conditions.